I am really enjoying reading Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin, and I’m happy to say that
it is becoming one of my favorite books. Despite the rollercoaster of emotions
that it holds, every so often I am left with a very hopeful feeling—that
someday we will have the means of being able to communicate with animals
without language. That is part of what I found to be most interesting in the
story. Grandin’s main argument is that animals have a consciousness just like
us. In other words, language is not a requirement for consciousness, so just
because animals can’t speak doesn’t mean they can’t feel the same pain, fear,
love, anger, friendship, etc. that we do.
Not only is this book expanding my horizons about the minds
of animals, but it also did so for autism. Grandin applies her theory of
“hyper-specificity” that comes along with certain cases of autism in teh form of pathos and ethos. What I found
most interesting is that she both placed this disorder on a pedestal as a great
talent for someone to possess, but also a great defecit. She uses this
condition of autism to compare how they think to how animals think: with great
attention to detail. This theory is also how she invented (a) her contraption
called the “Squeeze Machine” or “Hug Machine” to help those with autism calm
down during episodes of hyperactivity and (b) a way of direction cows through
slaughterhouse yards to make their journey as least stressful as possible.
While I am still ‘iffy’ about how effective her idea for
slaughterhouses is, I have faith because I’m pretty much all for the
“hyper-specificity” theory. This would make it seem much more humane in my
eyes. I can’t wait to finish the story! Temple Grandin is definitely one of the
most interesting people I have discovered.
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